Chapter 63 - End of the Struggle

"Forward! We must secure a way off the island! The other ship can't come here. We must secure the deck before their reinforcements arrive!" the captain roared as he and the sailors assaulted Garret's pirate crew. The passengers who stayed behind to fight also yelled and charged.

"Where's Lance?" Mei cried as she slashed a nearby pirate across the throat.

"Over there!" Lingqi shouted, and Mei saw Lance by the bridge, lashing his way into the captain's cabin with his lava chains, melting and burning everything they touched. Pirates screamed, and burnt meat filled the air around him as he kicked the door down and made his way inside.

"The other ship is not moving! However, they're sending reinforcements!" Lingqi cried, realizing now why the captain made the order. "Whatever Lance did, it worked."

"FIRE!" a voice screamed inside the captain's cabin, followed by a loud explosion. The ship rocked, and all eyes turned to see a teen fly into the sky and crash onto the deck. Mei's eyes widened as she saw it was Lance who was on the deck, groaning as his chest was badly burnt. The top three pairs of ribs could even be seen touching his sternum.

Lance coughed blood twice as the same voice roared, "Get the mana cannons out there and shoot him again! He's a fucking Meteor Vessel and probably the one who killed Garvin!"

Lance put his right hand on his chest as he lifted his left hand into the air. He screamed into the air, and a dark purple water orb appeared, floating above his left hand. Soon, sailors and pirates both felt as if something was wrenching their very souls. At her cultivation level, Mei could actually see green, tear-shaped lights coming out of the hearts of the sailors and pirates and entering the purple water orb.

"What is this sorcery?" she gasped as the water orb shone and broke. The water fell onto Lance's chest and the deck. Lance's wounds began to heal, and even the deck that got drenched by the water began to shine and become as radiant as newly cut wood.

"This is soul magic, the most miraculous and forbidden type of magic," Lingqi gasped as Lance's wounds completely healed. Meanwhile, the sailors, pirates, and even a few passengers felt light-headed, and their knees wobbled. Because of their numbers, only an insignificant amount of their souls was drained. However, most of their energy was drained in the process.

"You made me bleed! You made me bleed!" Lance roared as he stood on his feet, his mana surging wildly. The rei neidan within his Soul Realm trembled as it began to surge and convert wave upon wave of spirit energy into mana. The tortured souls within the depths of the Sea of Souls wailed in pain as more of their energy was forcibly ripped away from them.

To this day, it could be said that Lance hardly felt any physical pain from his enemies. A tough fight or two, but not to the extent of so much damage at once. It reminded him of his days as a snake, slithering in fear as birds would claw and peck at him viciously. Parts of him were eaten, and those traumatic experiences were ingrained in his heart.

Fear.

It was an emotion he had not felt in a long time. Frustration was felt when he fought a Meteor Vessel Practitioner who witnessed Mei kill people. Envy and rage were felt when all people were forced to kneel and kowtow when imperial guards came to inspect the Divine Tattoos of the people of Gold Lotus City. He had not felt fear in so long.

This time, he wasn't afraid of birds or humans. He was not afraid of the cold cages that imprisoned him when he was weak and defenseless against human trappers. He was not afraid of tiny chicks who looked at him as he was dropped in their nest as if he were lunch.

He had nearly died and was afraid of Death itself. Five mana cannons shot into him at once, combining into one powerful beam of spirit energy.

"He's still alive," Garret cursed and stepped onto the deck, his eyes reeling as he saw Lance practically unharmed. "WHAT? Those cannon beams blew open his chest! How the fuck did he heal so fast?"

"Who the hell's Garvin? Who keeps yelling his name, but I don't know the guy?" Lance said, Mei and Lingqi noticing him buy time as the panther stealthily approached the edge of the deck. The panther licked its lips as it stared at the sea.

"You don't even know who he was?" Garret roared as his men positioned the mana cannons. "He was the captain of the pirate crew you slaughtered. You killed him!"

"In position," a pirate whispered, and Lance curled his lips as Garret momentarily took his eyes off him to confirm. He used his Mirror Mirage Art and vanished before Garret looked back.

"Where did he go? Where is he?" Garret roared as the panther leaped off the ship, its body covered in flames as it lunged at Gary's first mate, who was in the leading lifeboat sent to help Garret.

Garret turned his head as he heard screams and cried out as he saw a giant sword appear before him. He hastily dodged out of the way, and a huge crash resounded behind him as the great sword pierced through the mana cannons behind him. Due to the great sword, the formation was broken, and some pirates howled in pain and agony as some mana cannons rolled onto their feet or banged against their shins.

Lance appeared exactly where he had disappeared. He only knew how to swing a sword. He merely used brute strength when he invaded the first pirate ship and looted it. This time, he threw the great sword as if he were throwing a javelin or spear.

"You probably thought I lost my nerve, right?" Lance inquired, Mei and Lingqi both nodding in agreement. "Well, I did. You go kill the pirates and save the sailors. I don't care about them. I'm going to make Garret my next test subject. He'll know the meaning of pain."

Lance teleported beside the pirate and kicked him inside the ruined captain's cabin. As he made his own way inside, he lashed out with his lava chains and killed the pirates rolling on the floor in pain from the mana cannons. Screams and metal clashed all over the ship and on the ocean's surface.